Parent Page

Parent's Page for Helpful Information or Inspiration

l. WELCOME TO HOLLAND (Inspiration)

I am sharing this because it had a profound effect on me.  Dealing with a child with a disability can be a very frustrating and difficult experience.  There will be highs and lows and ups and downs and we should learn from them.  Sometimes it is hard to accept the reality of what life has given us but the sooner that we do, the better off you will be.  I hope you like this as much as I did.

WELCOME TO HOLLAND

by Emily Perl Kingsley

        I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability -- to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel.  It’s like this . . .

        When you’re going to have a baby, it’s like planning a fabulous vacation trip -- to Italy.  You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans.  The Coliseum.  The Michelangelo David.  The gondolas in Venice.  You may learn some handy phrases in Italian.  It’s all very exciting.

        After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives.  You pack your bags and off you go.  Several hours later, the plane lands.  The stewardess comes in and says, “Welcome to Holland.”

        “Holland?!?” you say.  “What do you mean Holland?!?  I signed up for Italy!  I’m supposed to be in Italy.  All my life I’ve dreamed of going to Italy.”

        But there’s been a change in the flight plan.  They’ve landed in Holland and there you must stay.

        The important thing is that they haven’t taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease.  It’s just a different place.

        So you must go out and buy new guide books.  And you must learn a whole new language.  And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

        It’s just a different place.  It’s slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy.  But after you’ve been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around . . . and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills . . . Holland has tulips.  Holland even has Rembrandts.

        But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy . . . and they’re all bragging about what a wonderful time they’ve had there.  And for the rest of your life, you will say, “Yes, that’s where I was supposed to go.  That’s what I had planned.”

        And the pain of that will never, ever go away . . . because the loss of that dream is a very significant loss.

        But . . . if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn’t get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things . . . about Holland.

lI.  AUTISM SPECIALISTS

I am not a physician and cannot tell you what is best for your child but I want to let you know of one option that I use that you may want to consider.

Do you know there are doctor's here in Greenville that specialize in Autism and take medicaid.  If you do not know about these doctors you can ask your primary care physician about getting a referral to see one. (I go to Developmental Pediatrics for my son.)  It typically take six or more months to get in to see one.  Why see one?  They know about autism and can inform you about what resources are out there.  They will get to know you and your child on a personal level and they understand what many families go through when they have a child on the spectrum. They will work with you to come up with solutions to problems your child may be experiencing.  Examples may be issues with sleep, hyperactivity, impulsive behavior, self-injurious behavior, lack of focus, sensory issues, bowel problems etc. 

Autism is a hard disability to navigate through and I want the best for all my students.  

To quote Sir Francis Bacon "Knowledge is power."

lll. LENDING LIBRARY

I am so excited to provide a special needs lending library for the 2022-2023 school year.  I am offering my personal books for you to check out and take home to read. You can check out any book at Open House or just send me a note in your child's daily communication folder and I will send it home for you. These are for pleasure and informative, I do not endorse any specific book or philosophy.  Please do not write in them, especially the ones that have checklists.  I hope you will use this new service I am providing for you.

BOOKS

1.  Not My Boy, by Rodney Peete

(This is a story that is written from a male perspective. NFL football player Rodney Peete writes about his thoughts and experience dealing with his son's autism.)

2.  My Brother Charlie by Holly Robinson Peete

(This is a children's picture story book.  NFL Hall of Fame quarterback DAN MARINO, father of a son with autism states "One's heart is always in the experiences had with a brother or sister.  If you want to know about a person with autism, and the impact of autism on a family, this is the book to read."

3.  Ten Things Every Child With Autism Wishes You Knew   by Ellen Notbohm

(This book defines the top ten characteristics that illuminate the minds and hearts of children with autism.)

4.  Thinking in Pictures and Other Reports From My Life With Autism by Temple Grandin (Temple Grandin, Ph.D., is a gifted animal scientist who lectures widely on autism because she is autistic.  This book gives perspective into her life as a scientist and how she sees the world in ways that are incomprehensible to the rest of us.)

5.  There's a Boy in Here  by Judy Barron and Sean Barron

(A mother and son tell the story of his emergence from autism.)

6.  The Out of Sync Child by Carol Stock Kranowitz, M.A.

(This book is about recognizing and coping with sensory processing disorder.)

7.  The Out of Sync Child Has Fun  by Carol Stock Kranowitz, M.A.

(Activities for children with sensory processing disorder.)

8.  Disconnected Kids by Dr. Robert Melillo

(Dr. Melillo is the creator of the Brain Balance Program.  This book presents an at home program that allows parents to assess, addresses, and even correct their child's neurological disconnects, using simple physical, sensory, and academic exercises.)

9.  All I Really Needed To Know I Learned In Kindergarten  by Robert Fulghum

(Small, quick read about an essay that became a classic.)

10.  Children Learn What They Live by Dorothy Law Nolte

(Dorothy Law Nolte, Ph.D., is a lifelong teacher ande lecturer on family life education.  This book expands on her universally loved poem, "Children Learn What They Live.")

11.  P.S. Your Not Listening by Eleanor Craig

(This is a book written by a teacher and her work with five emotionally disturbed children.)

12.  Murphy's Boy by Torey L. Hayden

(This is a book about a fifteen year old boy who had not spoken for eight years and a desire to rescue this boy from his silence.)

13.  The Reason I Jump by Naoki Higashida

(A New York Times best seller.  The author is a 13 year old boy with autism who writes a one-of-a kind memoir that demonstrates how an autistic mind thinks, feels, perceives, and responds.)